1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a loom harness and is more particularly concerned with protective attachments for the top and bottom rails of the harness frame of a weaving loom, these attachments serving as nose guides to protect the rails and also to serve as supports for the heddle supporting rods.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the past, protective attachments in the form of nose guides or supports for heddle supporting rods, which removably surround the rails of a heddle frame, have been suggested. U.S. Pat. No. 3,901,282 discloses such a prior art device. In this prior art device, integral snap fasteners are provided which can be parted by a screwdriver or other wedge-like instrument so that the nose guide can be removed from the frame while the frame is in the loom or in the drawing-in machine. Some difficulty is encountered, however, in removing and replacing these prior art nose guides since the snap fasteners require the nose guide to be spread apart to an extent sufficient that the fastener elements will clear the rail.
In addition, the use of four widely spaced snap fasteners may not provide sufficient strength to preclude vertical lateral bending of the nose guide when in use. Such bending and the vibrations are imparted to the rails and to the nose guides tend to unsnap the snap fasteners, during operation, thereby causing the nose guide to become loosened upon the rail.
It has also been proposed in Swiss Pat. No. 430,615 issued to E. Frohlich A. G. to construct nose guides of two pieces of solid cross-section held together by screws. The two parts are not interchangeable and the screws may be loosened with vibration.
The applicant is also aware of the prior art patents cited in U.S. Pat. No. 3,901,282.
It is the object of the present invention to provide a protective attachment for the top and bottom rails of heddle frames of weaving looms, the attachment being readily and easily installed and removed from the rails while the frames are installed in the weaving looms or on the drawing-in machine.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an attachment for the top and bottom rails of a heddle frame, the attachment being capable of being installed on the rails and removed therefrom with a minimum of working space.